Imagine if someone gave you a small insight that could make you an incredible sum of money—a tip to use when running your business that could cause others to view you as a hero and won’t cost you a cent. Sometimes it’s the small things that make a big difference.
Let me tell you one simple thing you can do that will make you a hero to your employees and bring your revenues to a new high.
I had a conversation recently with one of my coaching clients who has more than 400 employees working for him. I asked him a few questions, and found out that 12 people in his company report directly to him. Then I asked him how many of those people he knows intimately. Meaning, does he know what they want in life? How much money they want to make? How high up in the company they want to get? What are their kids’ names? His response to me was that he didn’t know any of those things about any of his employees, not even his direct reports.
So here’s the tip I gave him. I challenged him to start getting to know his people on a deeper level. I told him to start with the top ranking person and work his way down from there. Do something simple yet meaningful. Take the person out to lunch and ask about their life. Keep the conversation about them. Not the company, not the weather, not the ball game, not yourself, nothing but them. Ask questions like “How can I make your life better? What can I do as your employer to help you accomplish your goals?”
When you do this for the first time, your employees are going to look at you like you have two heads. They might be hesitant to answer those type of questions because they aren’t used to having this type of conversation with you. But once you show them that you are genuinely invested in their well being, they will open up to you and it will pay amazing dividends to you and your company.
I’ve owned a number of companies and had hundreds of people work for me over the course of the last 38 years, and I’m telling you this is one of the best things you can do for your business. It really works. See, the point is that everybody matters. Every single person. It’s a common tendency as entrepreneurs and business owners to ignore the interests of the people below us in our organizations and stay focused on thinking about the next best thing for us as individuals.
If you take a few minutes and pay attention to the people around you, the ones that are working hard to help you fulfil your vision, the return on that investment of your time can be enormous. Whether you’ve got one employee or 400 employees, if you do this little tip I promise you your people will eventually run through a wall for you. They will be “all in” for your mission because they know you care about them and you’re thoughtful of their interests.
It really doesn't take that much human interaction to make a huge difference in the lives of other people
All throughout my business life I’ve done this on a regular basis for people that work for me. If they worked in the stockroom, I go hang out and talk with them, get to know them better. I'd buy pizza. We'd sit around and we'd talk during their break. I wouldn't talk about me or my company one bit. I would talk about them and their families. I always made the conversation about them and their hopes and dreams. That's why I had people work for me for decades, because I am genuinely interested in other people's welfare.
The big question is: Do you care? Are you interested in helping the people around you and creating lifelong allies?
We've been talking about giving in my Mastermind Groups all month. This is a great way for you to give. I want to encourage you today to complete one assignment. Get one or two people and take them to lunch. Go back in the stockroom, grab them out of their office, tell them you want to meet for lunch.Once you get them out of the work environment, say “Hey, tell me, how I can make your life better? How can I make a difference?" And you watch what happens in the life of that person. Watch how quickly your thoughtfulness makes a big impression on them and a big difference in their work life.
Are you ready to make a lot more money and be a hero to those around you? Go out there and crush it today. Show your people that you care about them. Be genuine with your intentions and get creative. Do something simple that shows them that you care, and come back and tell us how it went. Comment below and inspire others to do the same!
